Jumièges is situated on the north bank of the River Seine, between Duclair and Caudebec, in Normandy (Seine-Inférieure), France. SaintPhilibert served as first abbot, but due to the efforts of certain enemies, he was obliged to leave Jumièges. Under the second abbot, SaintAichardus, Jumièges flourished exceedingly and numbered nearly a thousand monks at one time. With the support of the dukes of Normandy, the abbey became a centre of religion and learning, its schools producing many scholars including the national historian, William of Jumièges. In the ninth century it was pillaged and burnt to the ground by the Normans, but was rebuilt on a grander scale by William, Duke of Normandy, surnamed Longue-Epée. It reached its peak about the eleventh century, and was regarded as a model of perfection for all the monasteries of the province. It was renowned especially for its charity to the poor, often called “Jumièges l’Aumônier”. The church was enlarged in 1256, and restored in 1573. The abbots of Jumièges took part in all the great affairs of the Church and nation with many of them becoming bishops throughout France and some serving as cardinals. The abbey suffered in the English invasion of the fifteenth century, but recovered and maintained its prosperity and high position until the whole province was devastated by the Huguenots and the Wars of Religion. In 1649 Jumièges was taken over by the Maurists who revived some of the abbey’s former grandeur. The French Revolution, however, ended its career as a monastery, and now only ruins remain.